You've Got To Be a Football Hero
by karly05
Summary: Vanessa has some news to share, and finds out that Ferb's not just smart, he's quite the Athlete as well.  Another F/V Friendship story set between the Series and the eventual Romance.


**A/N – Another entry in my efforts to flesh out a friendship for Ferb & Vanessa before the romance kicks in. Refers back to some things in "Vanessa's New Wheels," so go read that first if you haven't.**

You've Got To Be a Football Hero

Vanessa pulled up in front of the house on Maple Drive and hopped out of her beloved, ugly little Rosewood sedan. She already had spotted the red-haired woman working in the flower bed, and walked up the driveway toward her. Linda Flynn-Fletcher saw her approach, and sat back on her heels. Her expression was pleasant, but Vanessa could tell that the woman couldn't quite place her.

"Hi, Mrs. Flynn-Fletcher," she said as she approached. "It's Vanessa." When this didn't seem to help, she started to add, "Doofen-"

That was as far as she got before the realization dawned on the woman, and her smile grew bright and genuine. "Of course! You're Charlene's daughter! I haven't seen you in ages." She got to her feet, brushing the dirt from her hands. "Good heavens, you must be eighteen by now."

"Not until June," Vanessa corrected. "I stopped by to— "

"Oh, and look, you cut your hair! It's so cute! I really like it."

Vanessa had forgotten how chatty her mother's friend was. "Thanks," she acknowledged the compliment, fingering the ends of dark brown hair that curled under now, barely brushing her shoulders. "I'm looking for—"

"And that's a darling sweater; the color really suits you."

Okay, Vanessa knew exactly where this was coming from. Ever since she had taken the first tentative steps outside her all-black cocoon, any spot of color she wore was gushed over by her mother and anyone in her circle – as if the opinions of a bunch of middle-aged women were going to make her feel more confident in her fashion choices. Now,she tugged at the hem of her forest green top and murmured another, "Thanks," before she hastily blurted, "Is Ferb around?"

If his Mom was surprised by the question, she didn't show it. "The boys are down at the park; they had a football match today."

"They play football in the spring?" Vanessa didn't pay a lot of attention to sports, but she knew this sounded weird.

"Oh, sorry," Linda chuckled, and corrected herself. "_Soccer_. Lawrence calls it football; I've picked that up from him. They should be about done by now."

"Okay, thanks," said Vanessa, backing away before she was dragged into any more conversation. "Nice to see you."

Driving the few blocks to the park, she found a space in the lot and set off on a hike across the grass to the soccer field. There was a game underway, yellow jerseys against blue, and right away she spied the head of bright green hair on one of the Yellow players. Approaching the field, she picked out more familiar figures, Ferb's red-headed brother, Phineas, and their neighbor, Isabella, and the Indian boy, Baljeet. There were only a few scattered parents and younger siblings in the one small set of bleachers, and she sat down on the end of the bench a couple of rows up. The score was 3 to 2, Blues in the lead, but the Yellows had the ball and were moving it up the field. Vanessa suddenly wished she knew a little more about soccer – football – whatever you wanted to call it, but Ferb's team looked pretty good to her for a bunch of eleven and twelve year olds. The goal they were headed for was the one closest to where she was sitting, and she felt herself unexpectedly tense with anticipation as the players grew near. Baljeet was weaving among the opposing Blues, his feet keeping the ball in front of him, as his teammates arranged themselves nearer the goal. She watched Ferb as he came running backwards and pivoted into position, then, out of nowhere, his eyes locked with hers and he froze. In that instant, Baljeet kicked the ball away and it went hurtling straight at Ferb's green head. He never saw it coming, and Vanessa gasped and winced as it smacked into his skull and rebounded in the general direction of his red-headed brother. The next thing she knew, Phineas's foot had driven the ball into the goal, and the score was tied. The pointy-nosed boy happily called out, "Awesome pass, bro!"

In the bleachers, Vanessa grinned at Ferb and clapped her hands for him. He acknowledged her with a crooked smile and a little thumbs-up before he jogged off after his brother. There wasn't much time left in the game, and both teams were playing their hearts out. The Blues were barreling down the field, dangerously close to the goal, when Ferb suddenly executed a sharp, sliding move that knocked the ball cleanly out from under the Blue player. Vanessa was astonished that he could pull this off and regain his feet within an instant. The Yellows had possession now, and were heading back toward her end, passing the ball amongst themselves. A Yellow player Vanessa recognized as Isabella's friend, Holly, got tangled with one of the Blue players and lost control; Ferb paused as he passed her to give her a quick pat on the shoulder before joining the next attack. The Yellow team worked together with smooth coordination, but Ferb was obviously the stand-out player, running and dodging and moving the ball with an instinct that only could have come from years of experience with the sport. Well, of course, thought Vanessa; he was British, after all.

The game was down to a matter of seconds. Isabella had gotten off a perfect shot, but the Blue goalie had deflected it by the ends of his fingertips. The Yellows regrouped for a final assault, swarmed by Blue defenders, as Holly and Baljeet worked the ball back around to where they wanted it. Holly passed it to Phineas, who kicked it through the gap between two Blues rushing at him. Vanessa thought for a moment that he had made a fatal error, but the red-headed boy knew exactly what he was doing. In a flash, Ferb was on the other side of the gap, the ball made contact with his foot, and with one graceful, magnificent kick, he blasted it straight to the back of the net.

A short scream of excitement burst out of Vanessa before she could stop it. Seizing control of herself, she hunkered down on the bench, trying not to attract any more notice. Ferb obviously had heard her, however, even as he was being mobbed by his teammates, for now he looked her way and, beaming, raised one hand to his hair as if tipping an invisible hat to her. She grinned broadly at him and flashed an enthusiastic two-thumbs-up. The other spectators applauded their players and began chatting and stirring amongst themselves, but Vanessa stayed where she was. As the two teams mingled to exchange congratualtions and condolences, she watched Ferb shake hands and pat backs with the Blue goalie. Phineas, in his wake, did the same, then flung one arm around his brother's neck and reached up to ruffle his green hair. Chuckling, Ferb shook him off and gave him a little shove before moving on down the field. Everyone was going through their demonstrations of good sportsmanship, but Vanessa couldn't help noticing the way Ferb deliberately sought out each opposing player, even the few who had been sitting on the Blue bench the whole time she'd been there, offering hand-shakes and back-pats, a modest smile and a word of encouragement, everywhere he went.

At last, she moved to walk down from the bleachers. Ferb saw her stand up and, hastily breaking away from his friends, sprinted toward her. "Vanessa!"

"Hey, Ferb," she greeted him, as her feet reached the ground. "Great game."

"Thank you." His cheeks were a bit pink, but she didn't know if it was from modesty or exhaustion. His hair was damp with perspiration, and there was a towel draped around his neck. "I didn't know you were a football enthusiast," he noted.

"I'm not," she answered, then amended this. "I mean – I don't really know much about it. But you guys are awesome. I couldn't believe that play you made, where you went sideways and kicked the ball out from under…" She made a vague motion with her foot, as if to illustrate.

Ferb looked puzzled for only a moment, then said, "Oh, the tackle? Just basic stuff, really." This time, she was certain the color in his cheeks was a blush, as he changed the subject. "So, to what do I owe the pleasure?"

Vanessa chuckled slightly at his words. It always amused her, hearing Ferb speak. His voice always had been a bit deep for his age, and at twelve, this hadn't changed. And she never got tired of hearing his accent, and his proper way of phrasing things. "I was looking for you," she informed him. "Your Mom said you were here. Um, do you have a minute to talk?" she asked, feeling suddenly awkward.

"Certainly," he answered, inviting her with a gesture to have a seat on the front bench of the bleachers. He sat down beside her, and prompted her with a curious look to speak.

Vanessa felt her cheeks dimpling as she squeezed her hands together in her lap and said, with a smile of overwhelming pride and joy, "I've been accepted at Ackerton State."

Ferb's whole face lit up with delight. "Magnificent! Congratulations!" He reached out impulsively and grabbed one of her hands, then looked at it in surprise, as if he didn't quite know how he had ended up with it, or what to do with it. Vanessa's fingers gave his a little squeeze, and he patted her hand gently between both of his before relinquishing it.

"I just got the letter yesterday," she told him, surprised at how shaky her voice was. "I still can't believe it! I keep waiting for them to call and say they made a mistake."

"No mistake," he shook his head at her scoldingly. "I'm certain you came through with flying colors."

"I never knew I'd be this excited about going to college," she confessed, still a bit delirious. "I mean, I'm kind of nervous, too, but I'm really looking forward to it. And not just because it gets me away from my parents," she laughed a bit at this.

"Are you still thinking of pharmacy?" he asked.

Vanessa nodded. "It's a six-year program. I was a little worried about the money, but Mom's all for it. She's just happy that I've started to 'apply myself.' And my grades are good enough for a little scholarship money." She was still trembling a bit as she clenched her fists and declared, striving to keep her voice down, "I am just _so stinking excited!_"

"So am I," said Ferb, clearly meaning it. "I'm glad you told me."

"Are you kidding? You're the _first_ person I've told! After my parents, of course," she qualified this.

Ferb regarded her with surprise. "What about your friends?"

"Ye-e-ah," Vanessa rolled her eyes. "It's been kind of a weird year for me on the friend front. I mean, I still hang out with some of my old crowd, but… I don't know, I guess I've changed a lot with all this college stuff. Nobody else is that into it. I mean, some of them are going, but they're more into the whole party atmosphere. Lacey's going to Beauty School – and that's fine," she said hastily. "It's what she wants, and she'll be good at it. But, we've kind of grown apart, I guess." Vanessa felt a little frown creep into her brow as she added, "And things have been pretty awkward between us since she started dating Johnny."

Ferb regarded her quietly for a moment, before he softly ventured, "Johnny?"

It hadn't occurred to Vanessa before now that Ferb didn't know about her ex-boyfriend. The look in his eyes was one of mixed curiosity and dread, and Vanessa found herself stumbling to find the right words. "He's just this guy I hung out with for a while, a couple of years ago. Big mistake," she snorted, shaking her head.

"So, you don't still…" He looked very uncomfortable with the question he was trying to ask. "You're not jealous that Lacey is…?"

"Absolutely not," she assured him. "Seriously, she's welcome to him. And he's not interested in me any more, either." Vanessa didn't know why she felt she owed Ferb an explanation, but it made her feel better to see him relax. "Really, it was just some stupid high school thing; it never went that far. It's just kind of weird, seeing them around together." Changing the subject, she eased back into a small smile. "I wanted to tell you first about ASU because I knew you'd understand. Remember when you took me to the Milkshake Bar in Space? You said I could tell you anything."

"I meant it," he replied.

"I know. I'm glad we're friends, Ferb. It means a lot to me. You know," she said, indulging one more nervous little sigh, "as happy as I am about it, college is going to be a big challenge. I'll probably end up bending your ear a lot," she warned.

His serene smile calmed her as he gallantly declared, "My ear is entirely at your service."

Vanessa was aware that Ferb still had that boyish crush on her, although he had never been anything less than gentlemanly about it. She debated for a moment whether this would be a treat or a torment for him, but ultimately, she felt she owed him one. With a fond smile, she leaned over and dropped a brief kiss on his cheek.

"Thanks, Ferb."

THE END

**A/N – I got the title from an old "college" song from the '30s that goes, "You've got to be a football hero/To get along with the beautiful girls." Of course, they didn't mean _soccer_-football, but I figured it works both ways. Dan Povenmire and Jeff "Swampy" Marsh own the College Girl and her Football Hero – and others.**


End file.
